Page 7 of The Rising Dark
She ducked behind an elaborate tapestry halfway down the hallway and descended the hidden staircase that wound itself deep below the earth.As large as the section of Thornblood that stood aboveground seemed, the majority of the building was hewn into the rock beneath.Not meant for the public eye, these stairs were a simple white-washed concrete affair, lit by the red glow of sparse lights dotted along the walls.Even Lavinia’s eyes needed a modicum of light.The absolute darkness of being underground was as impenetrable to her as it would be to anyone else.The remnant of Michelle’s scent on Lavinia’s clothes became overpowered by the smells of stale air, cement, and the stench of the demon’s blood caked on her shirt.She found herself missing it.
No matter.She had more important things to worry about.On a landing that looked identical to various others she had already passed, she pushed through the reinforced iron door, strode through another nondescript corridor.Her feet had tracked this path so many times that they took her to her destination without further interference from her brain, giving her a precious moment to centre herself.The red door to the command room rose before her.She took a deep breath and stepped inside.
Lucretia was already there, of course, seated at the head of the table that dominated the otherwise plain room, her expression predicting nothing good.Proserpina had already made her way down here as well after having welcomed Michelle and Lavinia at the front door.She was leaning back on her chair staring at the ceiling as if the plain concrete would reveal its secrets if only she looked hard enough.Quintia sat at Lucretia’s right-hand side, scowling.Then again, that was neither good nor bad—Quintia always scowled.Lavinia sometimes wondered whether she had been born with a scowl across her tiny infant features.Vesta, on Luce’s left side, was as serene and poised as always.
Lavinia always thought of Quintia and Vesta as Luce’s angel and devil, each whispering advice into her ear.They certainly looked the part: Quintia wore her dark brown hair shaved at the sides, leaving it longer along the top.Her pierced ears glinted in the overhead light.Quintia preferred torn jeans and black T-shirts, while Vesta wore long, flowing garments in whites and pastels, fashionable in high society.Strands of golden thread were braided into her long blonde hair.Yet, looks were deceiving.Both were blood-sworn Sisters of the Sword, at the pinnacle of their physical strength, and skilled in hand-to-hand combat.While Quintia’s intimidating demeanour certainly had its uses and Luce hardly ever appeared in public without her by her side, it was Vesta who more often steered her decisions.
“Welcome home, Sister,” Vesta said, smiling warmly.
“Sisters,” Lavinia answered.Proserpina’s gaze lazily drifted towards Lavinia, almost as if surprised to find her there.Quintia scowled.Lucretia folded her hands onto the table in front of her.The skin was a mottled red of scar tissue, the result of a serious burn.Lavinia had never asked about the source of the scars.As Sisters of Twilight, they all bore more scars than they could count.It was better to leave the past in the past than drag it kicking and screaming into the present.
Lavinia waited for what was coming.
“What the fuck were you thinking?”
There it was.Lucretia radiated frustration, her black eyes spitting fire.Her shoulder-length hair grazed the top of the collar of her white shirt as she leaned forward.Behind Lavinia, the door opened softly, and Brigh slipped into the room.The youngest member of the Sisterhood quietly sat down on a chair beside Quintia, the bright copper of her pixie cut one of the only pops of colour in the room.
“What our dearest Sister means to say is, why did you bring the human here?”Vesta said, unperturbed by the glare thrown in her direction across the table by Quintia.
“As you all know, I have been searching for the rogue who has killed several humans over the last two months.There is some geographical variance in their victims, but they mainly concentrate around London—”
“Get to the point, Vin,” Lucretia interrupted.
Lavinia took a deep breath.“As I was looking for any clues that might help our search for the rogue, I encountered a tenebris.I initially fended it off, wounded it sufficiently that it retreated.Michelle thought I was hurt—I thought it would be best to make sure she got home safely.”Lavinia looked at her Sisters, their faces unreadable.“The demon reappeared.Despite my attacks, it was focused on Michelle, trying to get to her.
“I think Michelle was targeted by some kind of summoner.She has no idea about the supernatural world.The surprise she showed at the demon’s appearance couldn’t have been faked.The appearance of the demon around the same area that the rogue has been active in feels like a strange coincidence.In my opinion, keeping Michelle here is our best chance of keeping her safe.”
“We could have surveilled the human,” Proserpina said reasonably.“Kept an eye on her to see whether the warlock tried to send a demon to her again.”
“The risk to the human was too great.Even under surveillance, we might not be able to interfere in time.”
Lucretia sighed, massaging her forehead with her fingers.“You’re such a bleeding heart for humans, Vin.”
Lavinia didn’t reply.There was no use in denying it.While some others would consider the loss of a human life or two a regrettable but tolerable outcome, she had never been able to accept this.It was her job to keep everyone safe, and she took her oath seriously.
“Besides, we used to have human guests.”It wasn’t a strong argument, and Lavinia knew it even as she said it.Sure, Thornblood had been built with a dual purpose.It was both a stronghold, with visible and invisible defences, but it had equally been built as a space in which the Sisterhood could entertain and welcome humans.A place where they could present a front of respectability to their neighbours whenever necessary.In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, they had thrown lavish parties, inviting the humans from surrounding areas.Even in the Peak District, with its rugged landscape, humans had a tendency to spread into every nook and cranny of the world.But the compound hadn’t seen any human guests for decades.
“This is different, and you know it,” Quintia said.Her voice was low, almost a growl.Like many vampires, Quintia considered it too dangerous to let humans get too close.Before the advent of smartphones and mass media, being unveiled to the human population at large had been a manageable risk.Nowadays, many vampires agreed it was too dangerous.Once information leaked into the public consciousness, there would be no way to go back to how things were before.
Lavinia didn’t respond, but looked at the others.There was a possibility that they would expel Michelle, force Lavinia to retract the protection she had offered her.If Luce ordered it, Michelle would be on her way back to her small apartment in London within fifteen minutes.And Lavinia would allow it to happen.She knew how to bend the rules to her own purpose—but she had no interest whatsoever in challenging Lucretia’s leadership.
Lucretia leaned back, considering the issue.“What do you think, Proserpina?”
Pina waved one hand in the air as if the whole discussion was moot.“She’s here now.We have little to fear from a single human.She seems harmless enough.I consider the risk to our safety low, and the potential benefits in finding the warlock possibly substantial.”A sliver of hope blossomed in Lavinia’s chest.If Pina was on her side, the others would follow.Security was Pina’s remit—the others would take her recommendation seriously.
“I agree with our Sister,” Vesta said.Quintia grunted, an eloquent sound that expressed begrudging approval as well as her displeasure at being manoeuvred into an approval in the first place.Brigh nodded her assent.
Lucretia stood.Lavinia held her breath awaiting her judgement.
“She can stay.Butyouwill not rest until whoever is killing humans in London is caught.I expect you back out in the field tomorrow.And if no progress is made within the next week, the human will be released.We will not unduly raise suspicion, even if a life is on the line.”
Lavinia inclined her head, accepting the orders.“Of course, Sister.”It was as good a result as she could have hoped for.Michelle would be safe here, under the watchful gaze of her Sisters and their loyal staff.She would have preferred to look after her herself, but there was a serial killer to be caught, and the sooner they were, the sooner Michelle would be able to go back to her life.And that was the goal, wasn’t it?Yet, a note of dissatisfaction tinged her thoughts when the others rose and filed past her to their own tasks.Only Pina lingered after the others had left.
“You like her,” Pina said, leaning against the table.
“What?”With some difficulty Lavinia extricated herself from her own musings.
“The woman.”
